The re-election this week of Alexi Tsipras as prime minister of Greece took many observers by surprise. He was sworn in again a mere eight months after his far-left Syriza party first took power. Despite initial enthusiasm for the possibility of achieving financial stability without the further pain of austerity, Tsipras divided his party when he concluded that a deal with creditors was the only path left open for Greece. In the face of open rebellion within the Syriza party, he took the calculated step of calling for snap elections and looking to the people again for a fresh mandate.

Prior to Tsipras, Athens had never seen a far-left party take power before. Greece therefore found itself in uncharted territory, complicated by the desperation and anger generated by five years of painful austerity programs. Tsipras’ willingness to accept further austerity as a condition of Greece’s third bailout angered many hard-liners within his party, forcing the prime minister to take drastic action to retain his grip on power.

By submitting his resignation and forcing the country back to polls, Tsipras demonstrated a preference for public opinion over back-room negations and the risk of being unceremoniously dumped from office by his fellow party members, an every-present danger in parliamentary systems of government. In theory, Tsipras now has a new four-year mandate to implement his vision, although the Syriza party failed to obtain an outright majority and will be governing in coalition. So although he has put down the immediate rebellion by Syriza hard-liners, he will remain subject to the possibility of further revolts whittling away at his majority in the months and years to come.

Tsipras returns to the prime minister’s office with many difficult questions still unanswered. How can Greece’s damaged economy be re-invigorated? How much debt relief can be obtained from the creditor nations as a quid pro quo for further austerity? How realistic is it to expect Greece to ever repay a national debt that sits at 180 percent of the country’s anemic GDP? Should Greece remain in the eurozone or is the only path back to even relative prosperity one that the Greeks must walk alone?

While critics condemn Tsipras for turning his back on the long list of campaign promises he made before he was first elected earlier this year, supporters point to the overwhelming scale of the challenge facing any reformist government in Athens. Corruption is rife across the public sector, fostered by a series of prior governments that were consistently unwilling to take the steps necessary to clean-up the mess that has been accumulating since military rule ended in 1974.

The new government in Athens must now walk a tightrope, balancing the expectations of voters with the demand of creditors. As regards the latter, Germany remains the most significant creditor and the source of much needed bridge financing since the wheels first came off the Greek economy in 2010. Although “Mama Merkel” has become a secular saint in the eyes of many refugees who have been seeking asylum in Germany the past several weeks, Greek tabloids and left-wing protesters have preferred images of the German chancellor in Nazi uniform and repeated references to the looting of Greece by occupying German forces at the end of World War II.

Athens will need to build bridges with Berlin if a solid foundation for Greek finances is ever going to be laid. Without a comprehensive understanding on both sides of what is and is not possible, it is difficult to see how Tsipras can be successful at turning his country around.

In the near term, he must balance the budget, recapitalize Greek banks and attempt to avoid a general strike by far-left hard-liners who resent his willingness to do deals with Merkel and the other Greek creditors. As a sign of his confidence in his current path, Tsipras reappointed his finance minister, Euclid Tsakalotos, who will be leading up the difficult negotiations with other Eurozone countries that is to come.

Make no mistake – dark clouds remain fixed over Greece. Despite a convincing mandate in this election, Tsipras and his Syriza party face daunting odds as they attempt to make their country fit-for-purpose again.

Interestingly, though, the “death watch” media coverage that was incessant over the spring and summer has now evaporated. European attention is focused on the tsunami of migrants arriving from across the Middle East and Africa. The global audience worried about economic fall-out are today more concerned about the uncertainties and opacities in China, with Greece rarely attracting much attention.

By backing Tsipras a second time, the Greeks will hopefully be rewarded for their resolve. Even as the world’s attention drifts to other crises and catastrophes, Greece requires strong leadership and a clear vision more than ever.

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